French word

famine

Pronunciation

IPA/famin/

Meaning

  • feminine nounstarvation

Example

La famine touche surtout les enfants et les personnes âgées.

Starvation mainly affects children and older people.

Illustration for famine (starvation)

More examples

Les familles luttent contre la famine en recevant de l'aide alimentaire.

Families fight famine by receiving food aid.

Core concept

A community whose food supply has collapsed so badly that daily meals become unavailable for many people.

Common phrases

  • lutter contre la famine

    fight famine

  • victimes de la famine

    victims of famine

Similar words

faim: An individual state of feeling hungry and wanting food.
pénurie: Insufficient supply makes food or other goods hard to obtain.
crise alimentaire: Sudden disruption to food supplies or distribution creates a large-scale shortage.

Definition in French

État où une population manque gravement de nourriture sur une longue période, entraînant souffrances et hausse de la mortalité.

Word origin

The French noun famine continues Old French famine, which came from Latin famēs, the noun for hunger.

Usage tips

  • French famine describes collective starvation, whereas faim normally refers to an individual's hunger.

Other meanings

  • faminenoun

Opposites

Word lists with this word